Surveillance of arthropod vector-borne infectious diseases using remote sensing techniques: a review

Epidemiologists are adopting new remote sensing techniques to study a variety of vector-borne diseases. Associations between satellite-derived environmental variables such as temperature, humidity, and land cover type and vector density are used to identify and characterize vector habitats. The convergence of factors such as the availability of multi-temporal satellite data and georeferenced epidemiological data, collaboration between remote sensing scientists and biologists, and the availability of sophisticated, statistical geographic information system and image processing algorithms in a desktop environment creates a fertile research environment. The use of remote sensing techniques to map vector-borne diseases has evolved significantly over the past 25 years. In this paper, we review the status of remote sensing studies of arthropod vector-borne diseases due to mosquitoes, ticks, blackflies, tsetse flies, and sandflies, which are responsible for the majority of vector-borne diseases in the world. Examples of simple image classification techniques that associate land use and land cover types with vector habitats, as well as complex statistical models that link satellite-derived multi-temporal meteorological observations with vector biology and abundance, are discussed here. Future improvements in remote sensing applications in epidemiology are also discussed.     

Human ecology and space age technology: Some predictions

Four predictions are made on the future of space age technologies in human and cultural ecology: first, remote sensing systems will generate a need for more fieldwork, not less; second, the services and skills of anthropologists will become essential to the interpretation of satellite data, especially as these relate to areas characterized by non-Western cultural practices; third, training in remote sensing and the use of geographic information systems will become a regular offering for anthropology students; and fourth, since these new systems and methods can be applied retrospectively to the re-analysis of earlier ethnographic works, space age technologies will be with us for some time to come.     

低空无人机遥感在草原监测评价中的应用进展

低空域无人机遥感技术具有高时效性、高分辨率、低成本、易操控等优势,作为地面与高空遥感（航天与航空遥感）间测量尺度空缺的有益补充,低空无人机遥感扩展了样地样方空间尺度,提高了中、小尺度遥感观测信息的精细化程度,实现了草原生境信息的快速采集、处理与分析应用,是草原"星-空-地"一体化监测的重要组成。针对草原监测评价,总结了国内外低空无人机遥感在草原基况调查（草原草层高度监测、草原植被覆盖度监测与草原地上生物量估算）、草原动态监测（草原植被长势监测、草原产草量估测与草畜平衡监测）和草原应急管理（草原火灾、雪灾与生物灾害监测）中的应用。结合大数据、人工智能、云计算与物联网等新型技术,分析了低空无人机遥感在草原生态监测领域存在的不足和未来的发展方向,以期为低空无人机遥感关于草原监测评价与智慧草原的后续研究提供参考。     

Twenty‐first century remote sensing technologies are revolutionizing the study of tropical forests

The fields of tropical biology and conservation face significant transformations due to rapid technological developments in remote sensing. Other fields (e.g. Archeology) are experiencing this momentous change even more rapidly. In this article, we review some of the challenges that the fields of tropical biology and conservation face during the first quarter of the twenty‐first century from the perspective of various remote sensing technologies, and discuss the transformations that they may bring to these disciplines. In addition, we review two emerging technologies driving paradigm changes in the nexus of ecology, remote sensing, and analytics: near‐surface remote sensing and Wireless Sensor Networks. These two technologies, arising from the eScience paradigm, offer unique opportunities to integrate field observations at hyper‐temporal and spatial resolutions that were not possible as recently as 5 years ago.     

城市黑臭水体遥感监测与筛查研究进展

持续改善城市水环境,加强黑臭水体整治,不仅是“水污染防治行动计划(水十条)”的国家战略需求,也是人民群众的关注热点.国内外以往的研究侧重于黑臭水体的成因、评价方法和治理措施,而关于遥感手段监测黑臭水体的研究十分少见,很难满足国家的业务化监测需求.本文总结了黑臭水体遥感监测与筛查迫切需要解决的问题,包括完善城市黑臭水体的识别和分级标准,开展遥感监测黑臭水体的关键技术研究,构建城市黑臭水体遥感筛查体系.其中,重点归纳了核心关键技术,主要包括: 面向黑臭水体提取的高分影像预处理技术,城市水体提取技术,黑臭水体分类技术,基于星、空、地基遥感的黑臭水体识别与分级模型.本文总结基于高分遥感技术手段监测与筛查城市黑臭水体的研究进展、提出研究思路,将利于全面掌握黑臭水体的空间分布状况、治理进展情况,为城市黑臭水体整治提供有力的技术支撑.     

航空航天遥感在物种多样性研究与保护中的应用

人类活动导致全球范围内生物多样性丧失日趋严重。物种多样性是研究最为深入以及最贴近生物多样性管理的层次。物种多样性的研究往往受到多时空尺度生态过程的影响, 传统物种多样性调查方法受到人力物力影响, 局限性大, 物种多样性的研究与管理亟需整合不同来源的数据。遥感技术从传统的光学遥感阶段发展到不同平台、不同维度相结合的多源遥感阶段, 并逐渐进入以高空间分辨率和高光谱为特征、以激光雷达为前沿发展方向的综合遥感阶段。遥感技术因为其监测范围广、能监测人迹罕至地区以及长期可重复等特性, 为研究不同时空尺度的生态学科学问题提供了更新更优的研究手段。本文围绕种群动态、种间关系与群落多样性、功能属性及功能多样性以及生物多样性保护管理等生物多样性研究热点问题, 系统地论述了航空航天遥感技术在物种多样性研究与保护领域的应用, 总结了航空航天遥感技术在研究与物种多样性有关的主要生态学问题中的机遇与挑战。我们认为航空航天遥感技术利用多光谱甚至高光谱与激光技术从空中监测物种多样性, 从不同视角、基于不同光源提供了物种多样性不同侧面的信息, 能够减小地面调查强度, 在大范围和边远地区的物种多样性调查研究中有着至关重要的作用。依据光谱特性的物种判别以及依据激光雷达的三维结构量测将促进生物多样性的研究与管理, 加强遥感学家和生物多样性研究者的沟通交流将有助于促进不同时空尺度的生物多样性与遥感技术的结合。     

Fuzzy Nonlinear Proximal Support Vector Machine for Land Extraction Based on Remote Sensing Image

Currently, remote sensing technologies were widely employed in the dynamic monitoring of the land. This paper presented an algorithm named fuzzy nonlinear proximal support vector machine (FNPSVM) by basing on ETM⁺ remote sensing image. This algorithm is applied to extract various types of lands of the city Da’an in northern China. Two multi-category strategies, namely “one-against-one” and “one-against-rest” for this algorithm were described in detail and then compared. A fuzzy membership function was presented to reduce the effects of noises or outliers on the data samples. The approaches of feature extraction, feature selection, and several key parameter settings were also given. Numerous experiments were carried out to evaluate its performances including various accuracies (overall accuracies and kappa coefficient), stability, training speed, and classification speed. The FNPSVM classifier was compared to the other three classifiers including the maximum likelihood classifier (MLC), back propagation neural network (BPN), and the proximal support vector machine (PSVM) under different training conditions. The impacts of the selection of training samples, testing samples and features on the four classifiers were also evaluated in these experiments.     

3S技术及其在生态学研究中的应用

随着国民经济的迅速发展,人类对资源环境的需求越来越高,及时、准确、动态地获取资源现状及其变化信息对资源、生态环境的保护及可持续发展具有重要意义。本文综述了3S技术即遥感(RS)、地理信息系统(GIS)、全球定位系统(GPS)的概念、特点及其研究进展,探讨了3S技术在景观生态学及景观异质性研究、空间格局分析与模拟的应用;并对3S技术在群落生态学、植被调查、生物多样性研究、植被制图以及其它生态学领域中的应用作了展望。     

基于多源遥感数据的大豆叶面积指数估测精度对比

近年来遥感技术的革新促使遥感源越来越丰富.为分析多源遥感数据的叶面积指数(LAI)估测精度,本文以大豆为研究对象,利用比值植被指数(RVI)、归一化植被指数(NDVI)、土壤调整植被指数(SAVI)、差值植被指数(DVI)、三角植被指数(TVI)5种植被指数,结合地面实测LAI构建经验回归模型,比较3类遥感数据(地面高光谱数据、无人机多光谱影像以及高分一号WFV影像)对大豆LAI的估测能力,并从传感器几何位置和光谱响应特性以及像元空间分辨率三方面分析讨论了3类遥感数据的LAI反演差异.结果表明： 地面高光谱数据模型和无人机多光谱数据模型都可以准确预测大豆LAI(在α=0.01显著水平下,R²均>0.69,RMSE均<0.40);地面高光谱RVI对数模型的LAI预测能力优于无人机多光谱NDVI线性模型,但两者差异不大(E_A相差0.3%,R²相差0.04,RMSE相差0.006);高分一号WFV数据模型对研究区内大豆LAI的预测效果不理想(R²<0.30,RMSE>0.70).针对星、机、地三类遥感信息源,地面高光谱数据在反演LAI方面较传统多光谱数据有优势但不突出;16 m空间分辨率的高分一号WFV影像无法满足田块尺度作物长势监测的需求;在保证获得高精度大豆LAI预测值和高工作效率的前提条件下,基于无人机遥感的农情信息获取技术不失为一种最佳试验方案.在当今可用遥感信息源越来越多的情况下,农业无人机遥感信息可成为指导田块精细尺度作物管理的重要依据,为精准农业研究提供更科学准确的信息.     

Comparing and Combining Landsat Satellite Imagery and Participatory Data to Assess Land-Use and Land-Cover Changes in a Coastal Village in Papua New Guinea

In regions lacking socio-economic data, pairing satellite imagery with participatory information is essential for accurate land-use/cover (LULC) change assessments. At the village scale in Papua New Guinea we compare swidden LULC classifications using remote sensing analyses alone and analyses that combine participatory information and remotely sensed data. These participatory remote sensing (PRS) methods include participatory land-use mapping, household surveys, and validation of image analysis in combination with remotely sensed data. The classifications of the swidden area made using only remote sensing analysis show swidden areas are, on average, two and a half times larger than land managers reported for 1999 and 2011. Classifications made using only remote sensing analysis are homogeneous and lack discrimination among swidden plots, fallow land, and non-swidden vegetation. The information derived from PRS methods allows us to amend the remote sensing analysis and as a result swidden areas are more similar to actual swidden area found when ground-truthing. We conclude that PRS methods are needed to understand swidden system LULC complexities.     

基于遥感技术的森林健康研究综述

遥感技术可以有效完成复杂时空尺度海量信息的收集处理,其与森林健康研究的交叉、融合大大提高了复杂时空尺度上森林健康研究的表达能力.目前,森林健康遥感研究正处于各学科交叉、融合、调整,由静态向动态、单一向复杂、零散向系统转变的关键发展时期,但缺乏对森林健康问题的全面考量、逻辑安排和系统的顶层设计.在把握森林健康活力、组织结构和恢复力核心理念的基础上,从森林资源调查、森林生态功能评估、森林健康风险控制和森林植被参数提取四个方面构建和丰富基于遥感技术森林健康研究体系,对国内外森林健康遥感研究进行综述.通过对以上研究内容的总结分析,明确基于遥感技术的森林健康研究各领域的研究进展,及其在理论、技术和应用方面的不足.分析认为:(1)未来应加强森林生态和遥感技术重大基础理论研究,以明确森林结构、过程、功能与遥感数据之间的耦合关系;(2)发展完善新型遥感技术、遥感数据解译算法与软件工具,提高遥感数据的精确度、利用率和利用效率;(3)提升森林健康遥感研究成果的科技转化水平,推进快速分析评价与辅助决策功能研究,指导相关森林健康经营活动和科学研究的开展,以及林业政策的制定.     

遥感在生物多样性研究中的应用进展

随着人口的持续增长, 人类经济活动对自然资源的利用强度不断升级以及全球气候变暖, 全球物种正以前所未有的速度丧失, 生物多样性成为了全球关注的热点问题。传统生物多样性研究以地面调查方法为主, 重点关注物种或样地水平, 但无法满足景观尺度、区域尺度以及全球尺度的生物多样性保护和评估需求。遥感作为获取生物多样性信息的另一种手段, 近年来在生物多样性领域发展迅速, 其覆盖广、序列性以及可重复性等特点使之在大尺度生物多样性监测和制图以及评估方面具有极大优势。本文主要通过文献收集整理, 从观测手段、研究尺度、观测对象和生物多样性关注点等方面综述了遥感在生物多样性研究中的应用现状, 重点分析不同遥感平台的技术优势和局限性, 并探讨了未来遥感在生物多样性研究的应用趋势。遥感平台按观测高度可分为近地面遥感、航空遥感和卫星遥感, 能够获取样地-景观-区域-洲际-全球尺度的生物多样性信息。星载平台在生物多样性研究中应用最多, 航空遥感的应用研究偏少主要受飞行成本限制。近地面遥感作为一个新兴平台, 能够直接观测到物种的个体, 获取生物多样性关注的物种和种群信息, 是未来遥感在生物多样性应用中的发展方向。虽然遥感技术在生物多样性研究中的应用存在一定的局限性, 未来随着传感器发展和多源数据融合技术的完善, 遥感能更好地从多个尺度、全方位地服务于生物多样性保护和评估。     

土地覆盖变化检测方法比较——以内蒙古草原区为例

随着对地观测技术的不断发展,遥感影像分辨率逐渐提高,促进了基于遥感影像的变化检测从传统像元级的检测向面向对象的检测转变。为了探究面向对象的变化检测方法在土地覆盖变化检测中的有效性和适用性,对面向对象的变化检测方法与常规的变化检测方法进行对比评价。以内蒙古鄂尔多斯和包头地区为试验区,选取2002年及2011年的Landsat TM/ETM+影像为数据源,比较了图像代数运算、图像变换、图像空间结构特征和面向对象的多种变化检测方法,对研究区两期土地覆盖进行了变化检测研究。结果表明:面向对象的变化检测方法在总体精度、kappa系数上都有明显的优越性,总体精度均在87.42%以上,尤其以面向对象的变化矢量分析方法精度最高,达91.56%。此外,主成分差异法也有较好的检测效果,总体精度为87.83%。对总体精度较高的3种方法在不同土地覆盖变化类型中检测效果的研究表明:对于研究区几种主要土地覆盖变化类型,面向对象的变化矢量分析法均有较理想的检测效果,平均精度为85%左右,且始终优于面向对象的光谱向量相似法,以居民地及旱地相关的变化类型最为明显;主成分差异法对不同土地覆盖变化类型检测效果差异很大,对其中4种变化类型的精度甚至达到了93%以上,但对于检测草地与裸地间转化精度很低,甚至只有8.69%;在与工矿用地有关的土地覆盖变化类型中,面向对象的变化矢量分析法的精度明显高于主成分差异法,而在与居民地有关的变化类型中,主成分差异法表现出一定优势。     

Review of coral reef ecosystem remote sensing

Coral reef communities face unprecedented pressures at local, regional and global scales as a consequence of climate change and anthropogenic disturbance. Remote sensing, from satellites or aircraft, is possibly the only means to measure the effects of such stresses at appropriately large spatial scales. In the past 30 years, remote sensing of coral reefs has made rapid progress. However, the current technology is still not mature enough to monitor complicated coral reef ecosystems. Compared with foreign research in this field, our work lags far behind. There are still deficiencies in many aspects, such as basic data collection, theoretical research and platform construction. In our nation, it is even unclear how coral reefs disperse and where they may be unhealthy. In this paper, general characteristics of coral reef ecosystems and spectral features of different reef benthos have been summarized, based initially on a review of relevant literature in recent years. Based on the spectral separability of different reef types or benthos, remote sensing can be used to monitor two aspects of coral reefs: (1) Measurement of the ecological properties of reefs. (2) Health assessment of the coral reef ecosystem. In the first part, optical remote sensing methods are widely used to map reef geomorphology and habitats or biotopes. The investigation of geomorphologic zonation has proven to be one of the most successful applications, as different geomorphologic zones are associated with characteristic benthic community structures and occur at spatial scales of tens to hundreds of meters, they are amenable to remote detection by moderate to high resolution sensors. With more and more attention on the ecological problems of coral reefs, a number of studies have used high resolution sensors to map reef communities. The number of classes distinguishable depends on many factors, including the platforms, resolution (spectral, spatial and temporal resolution) and environmental conditions (water depth, water clarity, surface roughness, etc.). Compared with deep water color remote sensing, or terrestrial remote sensing, three techniques for the measurement of reef ecological properties are examined in this paper: (1) Coral reef classification system using remote sensing. (2) Techniques of sea surface correction and water column correction. (3) Techniques of coral reef information extraction from images. In terms of the complexity of coral reef ecosystems, the current techniques still need further improvement or optimization. In the health assessment of coral reef ecosystems, there are two ways to carry out the monitoring using remote sensing: (1) Monitoring the pigment or symbiotic zooxanthellae contents in corals. (2) Measuring the environmental properties of reefs. The first way is theoretically feasible, but difficult to achieve in practice. Currently, most reef health assessments are carried out by measuring environmental parameters, including sea surface temperature, solar radiation, ultraviolet radiation, water color, wind speed and direction, rainfall, ocean acidification, sea level, etc., of which sea surface temperature has been routinely measured by NOAA to monitor coral bleaching. In addition to the contents above, this article puts forward five main prospects for development in the future: (1) Establishment of a coral reef classification system using remote sensing. (2) Satellite launch for monitoring coral reefs. (3) Theoretical and methodological development. (4) Establishment of a spectral database for different reef benthos. (5) Integrated application of multi-source remote sensing data. It is hoped that the information provided here will be a reference for subsequent similar studies.     

Remote sensing of ecosystem services: A systematic review

Appropriate integration of remote sensing technologies into ecosystem services concepts and practices leads to potential practical benefits for the protection of biodiversity and the promotion of sustainable use of Earth's natural assets. The last decade has seen the rapid development of research efforts on the topic of ecosystem services, which has led to a significant increase in the number of scientific publications. This systematic review aims to identify, evaluate and synthesise the evidence provided in published peer reviewed studies framing their work in the context of spatially explicit remote sensing assessment and valuation of ecosystem services. Initially, a search through indexed scientific databases found 5920 papers making direct and/or indirect reference to the topic of “ecosystem services” between the years of 1960 and 2013. Among these papers, 211 make direct reference to the use of remote sensing. During the search we aimed at selecting papers that were peer-reviewed publications available through indexed bibliographic databases. For this reason, our literature search did not include books, grey literature, extended abstracts and presentations. We quantitatively present the growth of remote sensing applications in ecosystem services’ research, reviewing the literature to produce a summary of the state of available and feasible remote sensing variables used in the assessment and valuation of ecosystem services. The results provide valuable information on how remotely sensed Earth observation data are used currently to produce spatially-explicit assessments and valuation of ecosystem services. Using examples from the literature we produce a concise summary of what has been done, what can be done and what can be improved upon in the future to integrate remote sensing into ecosystem services research. The reason for doing so is to motivate discussion about methodological challenges, solutions and to encourage an uptake of remote sensing technology and data where it has potential practical applications.     

生物多样性遥感研究方法浅议

概括了遥感在生物多样性研究方面的的优势及在各种尺度为生物多样性评价提供信息的能力;讨论了生物多样性信息系统应具备的功能和应包含的内容;分析了生物多样性遥感研究中数学模型与地理信息系统的耦合问题。     

近20年城市遥感研究现状及其发展趋势

随着城市化进程的不断加速,城市遥感研究已成为地理学、生态学、城市规划学等学科领域主要发展方向之一。城市化使人口与经济增长的同时,也使得城市原有的生态环境状况发生改变,从而引起了一系列城市生态环境问题。城市遥感是一门多学科交叉研究领域,近年来已经取得了一系列显著的研究成果。对近年来城市遥感研究涉及的城市地表温度、边界扩张、不透水表面、景观格局以及生态安全5个方面的理论、研究方法、应用动态以及发展方向进行了较为详细的总结与探讨。主要得出如下结论：（1）数据源从单个遥感数据研究走向多源遥感数据融合发展,多源遥感数据尤其是结合高分辨率数据越来越多的被应用到城市研究的各个领域中;（2）城市遥感的研究目标不断扩展、深化和聚焦;（3）城市遥感研究已开始从二维空间向三维空间拓展;（4）城市遥感涉及的研究对象之间相互作用,相互影响在深入解读城市遥感研究理论意义和潜在挑战的基础上,结合最新研究对本文所涉及的主题进行了补充和完善,为城市典型生态环境问题的解决提供新的思路;今后应按照城市形态与构成、城市关键要素、生态环境响应、生态环境评价以及城市扩展与环境预测的体系结构进行综合分析。     

施氮时期对高产夏玉米氮代谢关键酶活性及抗氧化特性的影响

选用玉米品种登海661和郑单958为材料,研究了高产条件下施氮时期对夏玉米产量、氮素利用率、氮代谢相关酶及抗氧化酶活性的影响.结果表明： 拔节期一次性施氮不利于夏玉米产量提高和氮素积累,分次施氮且增施花粒肥显著提高了植株和籽粒的吸氮量,并提高了籽粒产量.拔节期、10叶期、花后10 d按2∶4∶4施氮,登海661产量最高可达14123.0 kg·hm^-2;基肥、拔节期、10叶期、花后10 d按1∶2∶5∶2施氮,郑单958产量最高可达14517.1 kg·hm^-2,这2种施氮方式较拔节期一次性施氮分别增产14.5%和17.5%.花前分次施氮可以显著提高开花期硝酸还原酶活性;登海661和郑单958在花后0~42 d中,施氮处理的谷氨酰胺合成酶、谷氨酸合成酶、谷氨酸脱氢酶活性分别平均提高了32.6%、47.1%、50.4%和145%、61.8%、25.6%,减缓了其下降趋势;超氧化物歧化酶、过氧化氢酶活性提高了22.0%、36.6%和13.4%、62.0%,丙二醛含量显著降低.在高产条件下,分次施氮且适当增加花粒肥施入比例可以提高氮代谢相关酶活性,延缓植株衰老,促进氮素吸收利用,进而提高籽粒产量.     

Intelligent infrastructure for sustainable potable water: a roundtable for emerging transnational research and technology development needs

PROBLEM STATEMENT: Recent commercial and residential development have substantially impacted the fluxes and quality of water that recharge the aquifers and discharges to streams, lakes and wetlands and, ultimately, is recycled for potable use. Whereas the contaminant sources may be varied in scope and composition, these issues of urban water sustainability are of public health concern at all levels of economic development worldwide, and require cheap and innovative environmental sensing capabilities and interactive monitoring networks, as well as tailored distributed water treatment technologies. To address this need, a roundtable was organized to explore the potential role of advances in biotechnology and bioengineering to aid in developing causative relationships between spatial and temporal changes in urbanization patterns and groundwater and surface water quality parameters, and to address aspects of socioeconomic constraints in implementing sustainable exploitation of water resources. WORKSHOP OUTCOMES: An interactive framework for quantitative analysis of the coupling between human and natural systems requires integrating information derived from online and offline point measurements with Geographic Information Systems (GIS)-based remote sensing imagery analysis, groundwater-surface water hydrologic fluxes and water quality data to assess the vulnerability of potable water supplies. Spatially referenced data to inform uncertainty-based dynamic models can be used to rank watershed-specific stressors and receptors to guide researchers and policymakers in the development of targeted sensing and monitoring technologies, as well as tailored control measures for risk mitigation of potable water from microbial and chemical environmental contamination. The enabling technologies encompass: (i) distributed sensing approaches for microbial and chemical contamination (e.g. pathogens, endocrine disruptors); (ii) distributed application-specific, and infrastructure-adaptive water treatment systems; (iii) geostatistical integration of monitoring data and GIS layers; and (iv) systems analysis of microbial and chemical proliferation in distribution systems. IMPACT: This operational framework is aimed at technology implementation while maximizing economic and public health benefits. The outcomes of the roundtable will further research agendas in information technology-based monitoring infrastructure development, integration of processes and spatial analysis, as well as in new educational and training platforms for students, practitioners and regulators. The potential for technology diffusion to emerging economies with limited financial resources is substantial.     

Susceptibility of mosquitoes in central Taiwan to natural infections of Dirofilaria immitis

From October 1997 to September 1998, 3085 Culex quinquefasciatus (Say) (Diptera: Culicidae), 584 Cx. tritaeniorhynchus (Giles) (Diptera: Culicidae), 392 Cx. annulus (Theobald) (Diptera: Culicidae), 374 Aedes albopictus (Skuse) (Diptera: Culicidae) and 102 Armigeres subalbatus (Coquillet) (Diptera: Culicidae) were collected and examined for Dirofilaria immitis (Leidy) (Spirurida: Filariidae) infection. However, only Cx. quinquefasciatus and Ae. albopictus were infected, with a prevalence of 4.28% and 3.74%, respectively. The intensity of D. immitis found in Ae. albopictus (3.43 larvae/mosquito) was higher than that found in Cx. quinquefasciatus (2.89 larvae/mosquito). After being fed with canine blood containing 7500 microfilariae (mf) per mL, Cx. quinquefasciatus ingested approximately two times as many mf as Ae. albopictus (mean of 31.73 in comparison to 16.47). However, almost three times as many third-stage infective larvae developed in Ae. albopictus as in Cx. quinquefasciatus (mean of 3.25 as compared with 1.10), with a vector efficiency index (VEI) of 19.73 and 3.47, respectively. The results showed that Cx. quinquefasciatus and Ae. albopictus served as natural vectors of D. immitis in central Taiwan. Although Ae. albopictus was more efficient for heartworm transmission, Cx. quinquefasciatus may play a more prominent role on the transmission of dirofilariasis in central Taiwan.